This invention relates to an improved connection and sampling apparatus and method for transferring chemicals. In particular, this invention relates to the transfer of high purity peroxide from ISO tank trailers to fabrication plants through a clean connection and sampling device that detects contamination prior to transfer, prevents contamination during the transfer, and enables containment of contaminates and proper disposal of them should any occur.
The standard in the industry for the transfer of caustic chemicals for use in manufacturing processes is the connection of a hose to tank truck and to the input valve of the receiving manufacturing plant. Particularly, in the field of the fabrication of microchips, the requirements for cleanliness are exactingly high. The problem with the standard of delivery in the art today is that, in the process of making the connection to the delivery tank, connecting the delivery hoses themselves, and making a connection to the fabrication facility, opportunities exist for contamination of the high purity chemicals which are being delivered. A variety of patents have issued in various fields for the protection of the purity and cleanliness of materials as they are transferred from one environment to another. For example, the Jennrich, et al. Patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,460,439 describes a sealed transfer system for use primarily in the medical environment for the transfer of pharmaceuticals from a "dirty" environment to a "clean" environment. A series of sealed doors and intermittent sterilization processes are used to ensure that a previously sterilized container of pharmaceuticals may be connected to the transfer port, the connection sterilized, the port opened and the material transferred without contaminating the clean environment.
Other patents have issued that are more directly related to the primary field of the invention such as the Ferri, Jr., et al. Patent, U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,346, which is directed to the field of transfer, storage and delivery of process chemicals. In particular, the invention concerns the delivery of ultra-high purity chemicals for use in a variety of industries such as the manufacture of semi-conductor wafers and similar products. The gist of this invention is the use of a vacuum system to draw chemicals through sealed conduits, thereby eliminating the need for pumps, which are sources of both maintenance problems and contamination in the system. The Ferri invention utilizes a vacuum to fill a remote vessel and then utilizes pressure to transfer the chemical in the filled vessel to the in-use station.
A drawback to the standard procedures utilized in the fabrication industry and disclosed in the art of which the Applicant is aware, is that although the ISO tank trailer is sterilized, the hoses are not. Additionally, the receiving end of the fabrication facility is generally exposed and capable of contamination. Also, a drawback to the systems known to the Applicant is that there is no method for making a clean contaminate free transfer after first verifying that the chemical itself is pure and uncontaminated. Thus, there is a need in the art for providing a clean connection and sampling apparatus for creating a controlled environment for the transfer of chemicals. It, therefore, is an object of this invention to provide an enclosed, improved, clean connection and sampling apparatus and method for creating a controlled environment for the transfer of chemicals which isolates the transfer area, keeps it contaminate free, is capable of cleaning after transfer and before, and which is capable of sampling the chemical to be transferred prior to transfer.